Consideration of frailty versus limited life expectancy when deprescribing: A response to: ‘LESS CHRON: A tool for deprescribing in patients with multimorbidity’

The letter1 by the authors of the LESS CHRON provides an opportunity to highlight an important issue regarding the definition of frailty and how frailty influences deprescribing. As the authors of the LESS CHRON highlight, their tool is not limited to use in people with limited life expectancy. The LESS CHRON tool was mentioned in the review2 of types of tools available to aid deprescribing in clinical practice within the section describing the ‘special population’ of those living with frailty and those with limited life expectancy. This section was informed by a systematic review by Thompson et al.3 on the deprescribing tools available for this population. No specific criteria for frailty or limited life expectancy were used in their review, instead ‘studies had to state explicitly that the tool was designed for this population or include specific considerations relevant to this population’.3 The LESS CHRON tool was included in their review as it was developed for those with multimorbidity.